NEW YORK: GUARDS: RAYMOND FELTON will start at the point, which seems like a colossal mistake. He had his career year in New York under Mike D'Antoni, but the Knicks have gone away from the pick-and-roll system he thrived in . . . Don't be surprised if JASON KIDD is overtaking Felton in minutes played by midseason. He's limited athletically but still a heady passer . . . Resident chucker J.R. SMITH should see big minutes early before IMAN SHUMPERT steps in as the defense half of their shooting guard platoon as soon as his knee is recovered mid-season . . . RONNIE BREWER will be Smith's defensive complement while Shumpert is out . . . PABLO PRIGIONI is a game manager who provides insurance at the point. FORWARDS: This is once again CARMELO ANTHONY's team, as the Knicks will run their offense through him. It's going to be a lot of iso, and a lot of scoring opportunities for Melo . . . AMAR'E STOUDEMIRE doesn't fit nearly as well in this system as he did in former coach Mike D'Antoni's. He ended up forcing a lot of shots a year ago, and his durability is a major question mark . . . STEVE NOVAK will continue to come off the bench strictly as a three-point shooter. He's one of the best long-range bombers in the NBA, but he's too much of a defensive liability to play more than 20 minutes per night . . . Swingman JAMES WHITE will also get some minutes at the two or three spots with his 6-foot-7 frame. . . CHRIS COPELAND had some solid years overseas, but will be lucky to break into this rotation . . . KURT THOMAS is in player/coach mode. CENTERS: TYSON CHANDLER is indispensible on the defensive end as long as sieves Carmelo Anthony and Amar'e Stoudemire are also in the frontcourt . . . MARCUS CAMBY can't defendin space like Chandler can, but his ability to rebound and protect the rim will come in handy as the second unit is no better defensively than the starters . . . RASHEED WALLACE came out of retirement, but has a long way to go, especially with his lack of conditioning, before he contributes much at age 38.

TORONTO: GUARDS: KYLE LOWRY is healthy again and will be handed the reigns. He could be the Raptors best player on both ends of the floor . . . As of now, JOSE CALDERON is still on the roster, but he's not long for Toronto with Lowry's arrival. He won't start over Lowry, but he could see decent minutes as the Raptors attempt to showcase him . . . With Toronto's influx of new talent, DeMAR DeROZAN could be marginalized on the offensive end. He hasn't really progressed past the dunker/raw athlete stage of his career . . . Rookie TERRENCE ROSS can just about match DeRozan's athleticism, and while he has no handle, he's a potentially deadly three-point threat . . . JOHN LUCAS III will back up both guard spots . . . ALAN ANDERSON returns as a defensive stopper in the second unit. FORWARDS: ANDREA BARGNANI makes his triumphant return and will likely go back to the perimeter. The Raptors have beefed up in the middle so Bargnani can play outside more . . . LANDRY FIELDS plays enough defense to earn minutes, but it seems like his signing was more a result of Toronto playing cap games to try to land Steve Nash. He'll likely platoon with Terrence Ross . . . ED DAVIS made some strides this offseason, but he's still not where the Raptors want him to be on the offensive end . . . LINAS KLEIZA's knee should be in better shape this season. The Raptors want more shooting, and he has a chance to grab a bigger role . . . Toronto will do everything it can to get out from under AMIR JOHNSON's contract . . . DOMINIC McGUIRE figures to occupy the final seat on the Raptors bench. CENTERS: JONAS VALANCIUNAS would have been the No. 2 pick of the draft had he come out a year later. He's a wiry, strong athlete who's physical down low with soft touch out to 10 feet. Toronto sees him as a franchise cornerstone who meshes nicely with Bargnani . . . AARON GRAY should provide ample competition for the starting center job.

The New York Knicks were relieved to see Carmelo Anthony playing like his usual self after he missed some time with an injury. With a sorely depleted frontcourt, they'll likely need Anthony at his best as they continue to pursue the Atlantic Division title.

A home-and-home set against the struggling Toronto Raptors could help their cause, with the first meeting coming in Toronto on Friday night before a rematch in New York on Saturday.

New York (40-26) went 1-2 during a three-game stint without Anthony - sidelined with a knee injury - with its 86.7 points per game during that stretch well below the season average of 98.8. But Anthony returned and scored 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting, helping his club to a 106-94 home win over Orlando on Wednesday.

"It (the knee) felt good for the most part," Anthony told the team's official website. "At the beginning of the game I wanted to try to see if I could do everything movement-wise and it felt pretty good. I was pain free tonight."

Anthony, the league's second-leading scorer at 27.4 points per game, recently had fluid drained from the back of his right knee after it had given him problems in recent weeks.

"I'm glad I went and got that procedure done so I put that behind me now," he said. "Just wish that I could have gotten to the bottom of it quicker or we could've got to the bottom of it quicker."

Anthony's return was especially important because of the litany of injuries already affecting New York's front line. Tyson Chandler is likely to miss a week with a bulging disk, while Amare Stoudemire, Rasheed Wallace and Kurt Thomas may miss the remainder of the regular season. Frontcourt play has already been a weakness all season with an average rebounding differential of minus-1.3 and an average of 33.3 points in the paint that ranks last in the NBA.

The attrition essentially forced coach Mike Woodson to use the 6-foot-9 Kenyon Martin as his center, with the recently-signed veteran starting each of the last four games. He's averaging 9.9 points on 60.7 percent shooting with 6.3 rebounds during that stretch.

Toronto (26-42) has lost two in a row and 10 of 14, falling 107-101 at league-worst Charlotte on Wednesday, even with DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry both breaking out of brief slumps.

DeRozan had averaged 12.8 points on 29.2 percent shooting over the last four games but scored 19 on 7-of-12 shooting against the Bobcats. Lowry, who was averaging 9.0 points while shooting 26.5 percent during his last four contests, had 18. Still, it wasn't enough for the Raptors, whose bench was outscored 52-13, a game after having their reserves outscored 41-16 in a loss to Miami.

Three-point shooting also continues to cost Toronto, which ranks near the bottom of the league at 34.4 percent. The Raptors have been particularly bad over the last four games, going 13 for 65 (20.0 percent).

Toronto has won three straight in the series, including both meetings this season by a combined six points. Rudy Gay matched Anthony's 32 with a season-high 32 points of his own in Toronto's 100-98 victory on Feb. 22.